


I'm glad you didn't die today, Sharp Shooter

by mysterioustrumpet



Series: The Robber and Sharp Shooter [4]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Bisexual Disaster Lance (Voltron), Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Bisexual Lotor (Voltron), Claustrophobia, Explosions, Gay Disaster Keith (Voltron), Gay Keith (Voltron), Gender-Neutral Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Hero Lance, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Jealous Keith (Voltron), M/M, Mutual Pining, Nausea, Nonbinary Pidge | Katie Holt, Opposites Attract, Past Lance/Lotor (Voltron), Villain Keith, i'm so glad i returned to this, i've missed klance so much
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-21
Updated: 2020-09-21
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:47:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26576254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mysterioustrumpet/pseuds/mysterioustrumpet
Summary: Lance was, to put it mildly, fed up. He was fed up with a lot of things. Namely, Keith Kogane. Especially being stuck in a tiny, dimly lit cell with Keith Kogane. Nothing like some good old claustrophobia with your sorta-kinda-ex-something as you chase down a level three villain.
Relationships: Keith/Lance (Voltron)
Series: The Robber and Sharp Shooter [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1468450
Comments: 10
Kudos: 138





	I'm glad you didn't die today, Sharp Shooter

**Author's Note:**

> thank you to camy for commenting on this fic and making my day better <3

“Well, isn’t this a fine pickle we’re in, huh?”

“You can’t seriously be trying to blame _me_ for this.”

“Oh, but I am. Because it’s all. Your. Fault. _”_

“Really? And who’s the one who sped ahead without checking for traps, _Lance?_ ”

“I wouldn’t have had to speed ahead if _you_ hadn’t been getting on my last nerve, _Keith!_ ”

Lance was, to put it mildly, fed up. He was fed up with a lot of things. Namely, Keith Kogane. Especially being stuck in a tiny, dimly lit cell with Keith Kogane. Nothing like some good old claustrophobia with your sorta-kinda-ex-something as you chase down a level three villain.

“How was I getting on your last nerve?” Keith demanded.

“By asking me questions about me and Lotor that I would _really_ rather not answer.”

“If you’d answer them then I’d stop asking.”

“Ugh, just forget it!!” Lance stood up with a huff, taking the few steps that the small space allowed towards the door. Where he promptly banged his fist against it. “Help! Somebody! Anybody! I’m trapped in here with a villain!”

Lance could almost _hear_ Keith roll his eyes. “Yeah. Keep doing that, I’m _sure_ it will work.”

Lance shot Keith a glare. “Whatever. At least I’m doing something productive.”

Keith leaned back against the wall where he sat and closed his eyes. “Fine. I’ll just sit here. With my questions that still don’t have answers.”

Lance groaned as he banged his head against the door. He had a long night ahead of him.

* * *

**_Earlier that day_ **

“Hey, Lance.” Pidge yawned as they greeted him, triggering a yawn of Lance’s own. Lance had just entered the bullpen from the elevator, and had been making his way to his desk when Pidge called out to him. “Shiro needs to see you in his office.”

“Alright.” Lance set his bag down and walked over to Shiro’s office, knocking on the door and waiting for Shiro’s voice to let him in. “Morning, Shiro. What’s up?”

Shiro gave him a brief smile. “Morning, Lance. I just wanted to talk for a bit about a couple of things, including your next assignment.”

Lance swallowed and sat down across from his boss. “Are you taking me off The Robber’s case?”

A heavy sigh escaped Shiro. “I don’t know for sure. It’s frustrating that The Robber managed to get away last week. But you and I both know just how crafty he is.” He paused. “Keith Kogane is a difficult and complicated case. There’s an idea I have in mind, but I can’t execute it just yet. So, I guess to answer your question, no. You’re still on his case.”

Lance let out a breath he hadn’t known he was holding, and his shoulders drooped in relief. Wait, relief? Did Lance _want_ to be on Keith’s case? Given their history, it would make sense for Lance to stay as far away from The Robber as possible, and for a while he’d done a good job of it. Too bad Keith had a habit of shoving himself into Lance’s life at every opportunity. That Lance hadn’t told Shiro the full story was also of note. Only Pidge and Hunk knew the extent of Lance’s past with The Robber, and Lance didn’t think Shiro would appreciate knowing just how entangled the two of them were.

“Okay,” Lance replied. “So, what’s my next assignment?”

“You’re going to be partnered with a hero who’s visiting our city for a while. He should be here in a few minutes, and together you’ll be working to stop this villain.” The villain file Shiro handed over was average at first glance, but looking through the details had Lance grimacing. “He’s going to be a tough one, for sure.”

Lance nodded and stood up. “I’m sure we can handle it. Who’s the other hero?”

Shiro glanced through his office window and smiled. “Looks like he’s here already. Why don’t you go out and greet him?”

Lance turned to see a tall man chatting with Pidge and Hunk at Pidge’s desk. His back faced Lance, his long silvery hair tied in a ponytail at the base of his lightly tanned neck. He made a comment to Pidge that made them laugh, and Lance frowned. Something about that guy looked familiar, but Lance couldn’t pin it. He left Shiro’s office and headed over, but when the guy turned around to catch Lance’s eye, Lance stopped in his tracks. Then he felt his face mold in what he hoped to be utter disgust. “Ugh. It’s _you_.”

“Come now, don’t be like that, Lance.” Lotor held out his hands in an open gesture. A stupid, arrogant smile spread on his stupid, arrogant face. “What happened between us was a while ago, and we’ve both moved on. It’s a pleasure to work with you now.”

“Not for me, it isn’t,” Lance grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Uh, who is this?” Pidge asked. “And how do you two know each other?”

Lotor smiled and extended a hand to them. “Nice to meet you. I’m Lotor Zarkonson, known by the hero name ‘Outlier’. Lance and I know each other because―”

“How we know each other doesn’t matter,” Lance cut in. There’s no way he was going to get into _that_ while his friends were around. He started moving towards the elevator. “Let’s just get on with our mission, already. I want to get this over with.”

Lance’s discomfort only served to make Lotor smile wider, his eyes narrowing in amusement. “Fine by me.” He turned to Hunk and Pidge as he followed behind Lance. “We’ll have to exchange pleasantries later, then. Nice to meet the both of you, though.”

Hunk exchanged a confused look with Pidge before lifting a hand in a small wave. “Uh, bye?”

Lance crossed his arms when he came to a stop in front of the elevator, his toe tapping as he waited for the agonizingly slow lift to reach their floor. He could feel Lotor’s presence right behind him, and Lance grit his teeth to fight against the urge to lean away. The fact that Lotor was taller than Lance did nothing to ease his annoyance.

“Lance,” Lotor whispered, his voice too low and near for Lance’s liking. “Can we talk? Please?”

The doors to the elevator opened and Lance eagerly stepped inside, thumbing the first floor button with unnecessary force. “We _are_ talking.”

Lotor sighed. “You know what I mean.” He stood next to Lance, a little too close for comfort. Scratch that, _way_ too close for comfort. Their shoulders brushed, and Lance took a step away. 

“Lotor, I don’t know what your intentions are with this mission,” Lance began, “but I’m telling you right now I want to keep this strictly professional. I don’t want to hear your side of the story, I don’t want you to apologize, I don’t even want you to bring it up. Let’s just do our jobs and bring this villain down.”

Lotor was silent for a beat, which Lance wished would last forever. “If you say so. I think it would be better to clear the air, but if that’s what you want then I’ll go along.” He paused. “I’m still interested, though. Just so you know.”

Lance rolled his eyes even as the heat flooded his face. “Yeah, well I’m _not_. So let’s forget about it entirely.”

Lotor’s chuckle grated against Lance’s skin. “Whatever you say, Sharp Shooter.”

“And don’t call me that!”

That made Lotor laugh out loud. “Alright, I get it. Why don’t you brief me on this villain?”

Lance glanced at him. “Shiro didn’t tell you?”

“No, he said you’d explain everything.”

“Okay.” Lance opened the file as they left the elevator and headed around to the parking lot. “‘Villain name: Blackout. Active status, level three threat. Signature is destroying power lines in multiple cities, causing blackouts and power outages for civilians. A couple injuries have been reported, and there have been several complaints about getting the power back up. Blackout was last seen heading north along the coast’.”

Lotor let out a low whistle. “Looks like we have our work cut out for us.”

“Hopefully we’ll catch him quickly,” Lance said. “We don’t want too many people without power.”

“Any pictures?”

Lance handed him the file so he could see for himself. The two of them settled into one of the hero vans, with Lance at the wheel, and headed towards their destination. The car ride didn’t take very long and was relatively silent, with Lotor asking the occasional question about the villain or about specific protocols from Lance’s precinct. When the reached the next city along the coast, they stopped for a quick bite and ate while listening to the police scanner.

“So,” Lotor asked, taking a sip of his coffee, “anyone special in your life?”

Lance scoffed. “We’re not doing this. Remember what I said about being professional?”

Lotor had the audacity to feign innocence. “Why, I am being professional. I’m making small talk, aren’t I?” He grinned. “So, what’s her name?”

Lance bit into his sandwich.

“His name?”

Man, this sure was a good sandwich.

“Their name? Or, perhaps, names?”

Yep. Definitely a good sandwich to ignore someone to.

Lotor sighed. “Fine, fine, I get it. But you can’t avoid talking about what happened forever, Lance.”

“I don’t need to avoid talking about it forever,” Lance replied. “Just until this mission is done and you go back to your own precinct.”

Almost immediately after Lance finished speaking, static sounded on the police scanner. Lotor reached forward and tuned the dial until voices came through, loud and frantic. “Blackout has been spotted on the crossroad of Third and Tenth! I repeat, the crossroad of Third and Tenth!”

Lance wrapped up the remainder of his sandwich and turned the car on, racing towards the villain with the hero announcement blaring from the car’s roof speakers. The drive that ensued was quick and chaotic, with people moving out of the way as soon as they heard the announcement. They were a block away from Third and Tenth when a shockwave hit the car, jostling the vehicle and turning the engine off entirely.

“What the―” Lotor’s expletive was cut off as a black, car-sized mass whipped past their windshield, bouncing off the cars next to them and denting the metal. Tendrils of black electricity jumped from the mass, and as it sped past them Lance could hear a crazy, off-kilter laugh accompanying it.

“I think we found Blackout,” Lance muttered.

“Let’s go!” Lotor tore off his seatbelt, threw open the car door, and took off down the street, leaving Lance to follow suit. It wasn’t hard to chase after the villain. Lance simply looked for the damage left in Blackout’s wake: dented cars, freshly broken road, bent lampposts. Stuff like that.

But Lance and Lotor were still only human. They tired out after about two blocks of sprinting, and five blocks of running/jogging. Lance rounded a corner to find Lotor bent over with his hands on his knees, his ragged breathing mimicking Lance’s.

“I lost . . . his tracks,” Lotor huffed. “No more damage.”

“Damn.” Lance stood up straight and placed his hands on his head, taking as deep of a breath as he could and scanning his surroundings.

“What . . . what now?” Lotor asked.

Lance kept up his scan as he waited for his heart rate to slow down. He blinked. One of the mid-rise buildings on this intersection didn’t have a number. He checked the surrounding buildings for their numbers, and sure enough, they were there. But this one building didn’t.

“‘Power Surge Inc.’?” Lance read out loud. His jaw grew slack. “Oh, you gotta’ be kidding me.”

“What?” Lotor, now recovered, turned to follow Lance’s gaze. “Huh. Well, you can’t say they’re not trying.”

Lance huffed a laugh and dropped his arms. “Let’s see what secrets this company has.”

The building’s lobby was strangely . . . empty. A desk where a receptionist would normally be stood to their right, and a couple sitting areas were strewn about, but there was nobody occupying them. Lance poked around the receptionist’s desk before they continued any further, giving a small hum of satisfaction when he found a floor plan of the building. A quick test of the elevator told them it wasn’t working. And trying to access the stairwell proved to be a failure as well.

“I don’t like this,” Lance murmured. “Blackout must have disabled part of the building’s electricity so we couldn’t follow him.”

Lotor shot him a grin. “This is where I come in, Sharp Shooter.”

“I told you not to call me that.”

“We’re on duty, aren’t we? Civilian names are no fun when we’re on duty.”

“Ugh, just use your powers, already.”

Lucky for them, one of Lotor’s powers was perfect for this kind of job. Lance didn’t know the specifics, but when Lotor touched an object, suddenly anything could phase through it. In this case: people. When Lotor pressed his hand to the stairwell door it became translucent, with a sort of flimsy, wobbly viscosity to it. Lance poked at it experimentally and, after a pointed glare from Lotor, he walked through. The sensation was similar to wading in a pool, Lance noted.

Once they were through to the other side, Lotor released his hold on the door and it reverted back to its original consistency. The air in the stairwell had a kind of tension to it, something about it that made Lance’s hair stand on end. He’d already been on edge with the creepily empty lobby, and the dim blue light in the stairwell didn’t help put his mind at ease. He wished he’d been allowed to bring Pidge or Hunk or both. Their powers would be especially helpful right now.

“Where to now, boss?” Lotor asked.

“First off, keep your voice down,” Lance whispered. “This place doesn’t feel right, and I want to minimize the amount of trouble we run into. Second, this building has a basement, and if I know something about villains, it’s that they love basements.”

Lotor lifted an eyebrow. “Right, ‘cuz you’re just the _expert_ on all things villain.”

 _Well, maybe one specific villain._ Ignoring the rush of heat to his cheeks, Lance headed for the left-hand stairs that would lead them downward. “Whatever. Let’s go.”

They descended in silence, which Lance had thought would be a good thing. Unfortunately the lack of talking left Lance to focus on the other sounds around him, and the longer they walked down the stairs the longer Lance felt like something was truly wrong in this building. Each step only served to increase his dread until his unease was palpable in the air, pushing in on him from every angle and sticking to him like a cold second-skin. Whatever was in the basement was not something Lance wanted to confront.

They reached the door to the basement floor and Lotor used his powers to slip them through again. The dim blue lighting from the stairwell was present in the basement as well, leaving everything shrouded in shadows and increasing Lance’s heart rate. He swallowed and continued forward until the two of them came across a fork.

“Should we split up?” Lotor asked.

Lance thought about it. If they split up they could cover more ground, but if one of them found Blackout before the other then they’d be fighting one-on-one. But what if they went together and Blackout ended up getting away?

“Yes,” Lance answered. He reached into his tool belt and brought out two high-tech-looking watches. “Here, take one. One of Pidge’s inventions. If you’re in the trouble just press the center button and you’ll warp instantly to me. We can communicate with it, too. The warp can only be used once though, so don’t waste it.”

“Got it.” Lotor slid on the watch and nodded to Lance. “Let’s hope we find the bastard.”

“Right.”

Lance took the right hand corridor, sticking close to the wall with his pistol in his hand and three paralyzer balls in the ammo compartment. He didn’t know how many he’d need to incapacitate Blackout, but given that Blackout had some sort of electric powers he wasn’t too confident the paralyzer ammo would work. He ran through different scenarios in his head as he came up on a corner, but just as he was about to stick his head out to check around it, someone walked out in front of him. Quick as a blur, Lance crouched and kicked out, earning a cry of pain from his opponent as they fell to the ground. Lance planted his foot on the person’s chest, aimed his paralyzer gun for their forehead, and immediately froze.

“Keith?!” Lance hissed. The last person Lance expected to run into, and here he was. Keith Kogane, his gray eyes wide with surprise through his mask.

Keith pulled down his mask with one hand and shot Lance a knowing smirk. “Wanna’ let me up, there, Sharp Shooter?”

Lance hated this. He hated that all it took were a few words and that stupid smirk of Keith’s to make Lance’s heart skip a beat. He hated that he could feel the butterflies begin to move around in his stomach, the annoyingly familiar feeling taunting him. With a frustrated groan Lance removed his foot, waiting for Keith to get to his feet before beginning his interrogation.

“What in the ever-loving hell are you _doing_ here, Keith?” he demanded. “Don’t tell me you’re chasing Blackout.”

Keith dusted off the back of his pants. “Huh? I don’t know who that is. I’ve been following someone else. What are _you_ doing here?”

“I’m on a mission, what else?”

“Well, maybe you wanted to see my beautiful face again.”

“Sure, as if I’d know exactly where you were for me to find you in this villain hideout. Sounds about right.”

Keith shrugged. “Hey, I can’t help it if you’re _that_ attracted to me.”

The heat that painted Lance’s face made him hate this situation even more. “Just shut your mouth and come with me, Keith. We might find who you’re looking for.”

The watch vibrated on Lance’s wrist and he pulled it close to his ear. “Lance, there’s nothing here but a dead end. I’m heading over to you.”

“Gotcha,” Lance replied. “I’ll stay put.”

Keith lifted an eyebrow at him. “Who was that?”

“My partner for this mission.”

“And your partner is?”

“A hero from another precinct. His name is Outlier.”

Keith frowned. “Yeah, but who _is_ he?”

Fortunately Lance was saved from answering by Lotor’s appearance, who immediately stiffened upon seeing Keith. “And who might this be?”

“Keith Kogane, a.k.a, The Robber,” Lance replied. “I bumped into him right before you called, and it seems he’s here tracking down another villain for some reason.”

“He won’t get in the way of our mission, will he?” Lotor asked.

“I have a perfectly good reason for being here,” Keith cut in, taking a step forward to glare up at Lotor. “Lance and I were just about to head further in.”

Lotor’s eyes narrowed. “Were you, now? Then you won’t mind if I join you and _Lance_ , will you?”

Keith’s expression seemed to tighten, and it was a moment before he answered. “Not at all.”

Lance wanted to die. He wanted to disappear from this tension, from whatever was going on between Lotor and Keith that would make them despise each other so much right from the offset. Well, aside from their occupations. He pictured a beach, his childhood home, the smell of his mother’s cooking, any happy place he could think of that would improve his mood even the tiniest bit.

“Well,” he sighed, “let’s get on with it, shall we?”

The three of them continued through the gloom, keeping their footsteps muted on the metallic floor. Unfortunately the building floor plan had only indicated that there _was_ a basement, and not the layout of it or what it looked like. Lance once again wished he could have brought Hunk or Pidge to tell him where to go next.

“So,” Lotor whispered, “how do you two know each other?”

Lance almost tripped. He cleared his throat and was grateful for the dim lighting so his blush wasn’t showing. “Um, we’ve run into each other a few times.”

“A few times?” Keith scoffed. “It’s been more than that, Sharp Shooter.”

The nickname burned Lance’s ears. “Y-yeah, well I still plan on arresting you once we’re done here. Don’t think I forgot about your escape last week, Keith. Thanks for nothing, by the way.”

Keith gasped, feigning hurt as he placed his hand on his chest. “What are you talking about, dear Lance? I’ve been nothing but a gentleman since our first meeting!” 

“Psh. Yeah, right. As if you need me to remind you.” 

Lance could hear the smirk in Keith’s voice. “Please, do go ahead.” 

Oh, Lance wanted to. By all means, he could. Lance had all sorts of retorts he could use in this moment if it weren’t for Lotor’s presence. The last thing he needed was for a respected hero to be suspicious about his relationship with a villain. He shouldn’t even be engaging with Keith, well aware that even a baby could pick up on their flirtatious banter. _Way to give yourself away, McClain._

“You two seem to know each other quite well for only having met a few times,” Lotor remarked, causing sweat to bud on Lance’s forehead. His heart stopped when Lotor added, “Well, not as well as Lance and I know each other.”

Lance couldn’t see Keith’s face, but his tone was tight with disappointment. “I see. Good for you two, then.”

“Lance, how many times did we ‘run into each other’, exactly?” Lotor continued, and it took everything in Lance not to smack him right there.

Luckily he was saved when he turned the next corner and halted in his tracks, signaling to the others to stop.

“Do you guys hear that?” he whispered.

Muffled voices sounded from up ahead. Lotor and Keith nodded, and Lotor gestured to switch places with Lance. He and Keith followed behind Lotor, coming up on a large metal door with a minimalistic flame symbol engraved on it. There were definitely voices coming from behind it, but without knowing what was waiting for them, Lotor couldn’t use his powers. If the room was small, or someone was guarding the door, they would catch them trying to sneak in.

“What is this symbol?” Lotor whispered.

“I know what it is,” Keith replied. Lance blinked at Keith’s rough response, and was even more concerned to see the expression on Keith’s face. Eyebrows pulled low, mouth set in a tight line, the muscles working in his jaw as he clenched it. Something bad must be behind that door if it made Keith react that way.

“Let me listen to what they’re saying,” Lance said, stepping closer and pressing his ear to the door. The other two followed suit, Keith deliberately using his right ear so he and Lance were looking at each other. Lance rolled his eyes and closed them to focus better on the sound.

“. . . can be done about that,” someone was saying, their voice even and firm. “We’ll just have to take care of them before they find out.”

“And how do you suppose we’ll do that, huh? Just march up to the precinct in broad daylight and blow up the place? We’ve tried that before, Sketch, and it didn’t work.” The second voice sounded rough and scratchy, like damage had been done to their vocal cords. 

“That’s not what I’m saying,” the first voice, Sketch, replied. “We’ll take them out one at a time, like when the king takes the pawns in chess.”

“You have no idea how chess works, do you.”

“S-shut up! I know enough!”

“Quiet, both of you.” A third voice, deep and powerful, silenced the other two in irritation. “I’ve made myself clear on this issue multiple times, when once should have been enough. _Don’t_ make me repeat myself again.”

“Yes, sir,” the other two voices said. 

“Now, let’s deal with our current problem, shall we?” the low voice said. “Blackout? Go ahead.”

 _BAM!!_ The lights turned on with a loud slam and Lance jumped back from the door, squinting as his eyes adjusted to the light. But the light was the least of his problems. Standing at the end of the long hallway was a tall, lanky man with electricity flickering around his pale hands and along his wiry straw-colored hair. His black bodysuit looked like it was made of rubber, with strong reflections from the overhead lights. The man took a step forward, hunkered down, and the air hummed as he increased the voltage in his electricity.

“I’m guessing you’re Blackout?” Lance said in a small voice.

The man let out a wild laugh and shot towards them, barely giving them enough time to blink before he was upon them. Lance lunged to the left, letting his body work on autopilot as he rolled out of the way and got to his feet. Blackout slammed into the metal door, his electricity arcing along the walls and getting uncomfortably close. Lotor drew his weapon, a bayard that a translucent purple blade extended from, and immediately went on the attack. He swiped. Blackout dodged and stepped in close for an uppercut. Lotor blocked and countered. Blackout jumped back and his right hand glowed as he prepared another attack.

Lance was about to jump in to help when Keith gripped his arm with so much force it caused Lance to cry out. “Hey! What the hell, Keith?”

“We need to run. _Now!_ ” Desperation filled Keith’s voice.

“What?! Are you crazy?!” 

“Run, Lance!” Lotor yelled, parrying another attack from Blackout. “I’ll catch up with you later!” 

_The watches._ “Right!” Lance turned to Keith. “Let’s go!”

The two took off down the hall, sprinting at full speed, but not before hearing the low-voiced leader say, “bring those two to me” and his lackey’s eager responses. Lance and Keith turned so many corners he was sure they were lost, the whole time acutely aware of Sketch and Lackey #2 on their heels. No matter how fast they ran, they couldn’t seem to outrun the villains. The labyrinthian hallways seemed to go on forever. He and Keith would almost certainly be caught. 

They turned another corner and, to Lance’s dismay, Keith skidded to a stop. “Keith! What are you doing?”

“Supply closet,” he huffed. Without warning, Keith yanked Lance by the collar, dragged him into a dark, cramped space, and closed the door, squeezing them in and hopefully losing the trail of the two villains.

Except there was something Keith hadn’t accounted for. The tiny supply closet meant that he and Lance were pressed up against each other, leaving no space between their bodies. With every heaving attempt to catch their breaths their chests swelled against each other, and Lance was all too aware of Keith’s leg in between his. Small shafts of light filtered in through tiny slits towards the top of the closet door, and when Lance’s eyes adjusted he found his face barely an inch away from Keith’s. The already hot space seemed to ramp up in temperature, even more so when Lance realized Keith was staring at him. 

“What?” Lance whispered. 

“You and Lotor?” Keith murmured. 

Oh no. This didn’t sound good. “What about him?”

“You and Lotor,” he said, more like a statement than a question. “You two dated?”

Lance tried to stall. “I don’t know where you got that idea.”

“Maybe from the way he was talking about how well he knew you,” Keith said, and Lance’s eyes narrowed at the lack of playfulness in his tone. 

“Look, we don’t have time to talk about this,” Lance said, shifting his stance and trying to give himself some space. “I don’t think the villains are on our trail anymore, so let’s get out of this stuffy closet.”

“Stuffy?” Keith didn’t seem to get the hint. He filled up more of the space, leaning forward and pressing closer to Lance so that their noses brushed. “So I take it you don’t like this situation?”

 _Shit._ Lance’s thoughts were starting to turn fuzzy, dwarfed by the feel of Keith’s body against his and Keith’s hand on Lance’s waist. Lance swallowed against a rapidly drying throat. He wanted to kiss Keith. He wanted to kiss Keith so bad. Lance still remembered the feeling of Keith’s lips against his from their kiss in the bathroom last week, and he’d thought about that kiss more times in the past seven days than he was proud to admit. Everything in him screamed to kiss the man in front of him, and when Keith wet his lips Lance almost did just that. But this wasn’t the place or the time, not to mention Keith was a villain. Lance’s subconscious had no problem reminding him time and time again that there was no future for the two of them, no matter how much Lance wanted one. 

So he fought against himself, gently pushed Keith back, and slightly opened the supply closet door, looking around to make sure the coast was clear before stepping out. “I’m on a mission right now, Keith. I can’t be distracted.”

Keith shrugged. “Fine. I’ll just keep asking about Lotor until you answer me.”

“And I don’t have to answer any one of your questions,” Lance retorted. 

“So then you won’t mind if I do.” 

“Fine.”

“Good.”

“Great!”

The two glared at each other for a beat before Lance heaved an exasperated sigh and walked away, back in the direction they’d come from. As they began walking Keith, faithful to his words as ever, began asking more questions about Lance’s history and relationship to Lotor. Funny how two seconds ago Lance had been ready and willing to put his tongue down Keith’s throat, and now all he wanted to do was strangle it. Lance got so annoyed he started walking faster, until he wasn’t looking where he was walking and he stepped on a tile that was very obviously discolored from the others around it.

A loud alarm started blaring through the hallway, making Lance and Keith cover their ears, and then suddenly the floor was shifting underneath them. The wall to their right opened up, the floor beneath them chucked them in, and the wall slid shut. Great. They were trapped.

Lance turned to look at Keith with the most deadpan of deadpan expressions. “Well, isn’t this a fine pickle we’re in, huh?”

* * *

Lance could bang on the door all he wanted. He could bang on the door until his fist hurt―which he did―and he could even try changing his weapon into different things in the hopes that something would work―which he also did. But the door wouldn’t budge. Frustrated, he tossed aside his weapon with a rough sigh and flopped onto the floor with his arms crossed.

All the while, Keith had watched him with a probing expression. An expression that Lance _knew_ meant Keith was thinking about Lotor’s earlier words. Lance did his best to avoid Keith’s gaze, but it was like a physical sensation in the air. He could almost _hear_ Keith’s thoughts.

“Ugh, just ask your questions,” Lance said after the tension in the cell threatened to drive him insane. “I know you have them.”

“Were you and Lotor in a relationship?”

“Wow, you wasted no time in getting straight to it, huh?”

Keith didn’t look amused. “Were you?”

Lance sighed as he leaned back against the wall. “Well, if you’re asking if we were ever ‘boyfriends’, the answer is no. If you’re asking if we dated, then that’s a yes.”

“Did you ever sleep together?”

At that, Lance gave Keith a look. A carefully passive expression sat on Keith’s face. “Why do you need to know that?”

Keith blinked and looked away, wearing that same blank look. “I want to know. Did you?”

“Why does it matter?” Lance insisted.

Keith’s gaze flickered to Lance, then back to the floor. “It doesn’t matter. I just want to know.”

“But why does it matter to _you?_ ” Lance asked again.

Keith looked back at Lance, and this time they held each others’ gaze. One second. Two seconds. Three. Lance thought Keith wouldn’t answer. But a muscle twitched in Keith’s jaw, breaking his mask, and he frowned. “I-I just . . . I want to know.”

Then it occurred to Lance. “Keith, are you . . . jealous?”

“What?!” Keith exclaimed. In the dim light, Lance could see the faintest blush spread across his cheeks. “I-I’m not!”

The realization sent trills of unexpected warmth through Lance, and he couldn’t stop himself from smiling. “You totally are! The infamous Keith Kogane is jealous that I slept with someone else!”

Keith’s features hardened. “So you did sleep with him.”

Crap. Lance had walked right into that one. “Yeah, whatever. We dated for about a month, I thought we were exclusive and we weren’t, he slept with someone else, and I got angry. Happy now?”

Keith averted his gaze. His hands clenched and unclenched on his lap, and the temperature in the room seemed to hike a few degrees. Feeling suddenly bold, Lance crawled over to where Keith was sitting, propped himself up on his knees, and leaned over so that he caged Keith against the wall.

“What are you doing?” Keith asked, looking up at Lance.

“I’m showing you that you have nothing to be jealous of,” Lance whispered, bringing his face closer.

Keith’s swallow seemed to echo in the room. “I-I told you I’m not jealous.”

Lance smirked. “Right. You’re not jealous that I’ve slept with someone before you?”

Keith’s gaze flickered from Lance’s lips to his eyes, then back again before lifting his chin. “Not at all.”

Keith’s body heat mingled with Lance’s, washing Lance in warmth and making his heart rate pick up. His body tingled in anticipation. They were so close, Lance could feel Keith’s breath fanning his lips when he exhaled. The desire from earlier swallowed Lance whole. He wanted this man. Lance wanted Keith with a fire that he’d never felt with anyone before, a fire that consumed him and robbed him of everything he’d previously thought about himself. Lance’s lips ached with the memory of Keith’s. In the dim lighting of the cell, Keith’s eyes were darker than ink. Would it be arrogant to think that some of that was because of Lance? He didn’t think so. 

Keith huffed, the slight burst of air warm against Lance’s face. “Are you gonna’ kiss me or just stay frozen, Sharp Shooter?”

“Were you jealous of me and Lotor?” Lance’s voice was too raw.

Keith swallowed again, and when he looked at Lance’s lips his gaze stayed there. His eyelids lowered. “Yes,” he croaked. And with that, Keith reached up, laid one hand on the back of Lance’s neck, and pulled him down for their lips to meet.

Lance immediately knew that one kiss wouldn’t be enough. The hand that traveled from his neck to his back burned along his skin, and the feeling of his lips sliding against Keith’s ignited the fire that had been dormant inside him since the last time they kissed. Lance threaded his fingers through Keith’s hair at the nape of his neck, pulling him closer, closer, closer. The need to be closer tugged in Lance’s gut, a painful twist that only made Lance want it more. Lance could feel them heating up, their movements growing more frantic and the kiss deepening. Keith’s tongue glided along Lance’s lower lip. Lance ever so slightly dragged Keith’s lip between his teeth. Keith’s hands traveled along his waist, brushing up and down and turning Lance’s brain into mush. If this continued, Lance wouldn’t be able to stop himself.

Exercising possibly the greatest amount of self control known to man, Lance broke away from Keith and the two gasped for air, Keith’s forehead resting on Lance’s collar and Lance’s resting on the back of his hand as it pressed into the wall. _This man could very well ruin me._

Once they had caught their breaths, Keith pulled back and looked up at Lance. “So. How do we get out of this cell.” Lance couldn’t help but throw his head back and laugh, laughing harder at Keith’s confused look. “What?”

“N-nothing!” Lance choked out. “It’s just—it’s just that you look so serious for once! Not to mention, _that’s_ the thing you say after we just had our tongues down each other’s throats? You’re one strange specimen, Keith Kogane.”

A blush coated Keith’s cheeks in pink, which Lance found utterly adorable. “W-well, what am I supposed to say? ‘Thanks for making out with me, Sharp Shooter, same time next week’?”

“Nah, what you said was funnier.” Lance stood up and stretched out his chest. “Let’s get outta’ here.”

Keith rolled his eyes and stood up as well. “Fine. How do you suppose we do that?”

Lance brought his hand to his chin in thought. “What about your teleportation powers?”

“Nope,” Keith replied, shaking his head. “I need to have a specific destination in mind, not just ‘away’ or ‘out’.”

“Hm.” Lance thought some more. “The way we got in this room was through a weight-sensitive tile on the floor in the hallway. If I were a villain designing this place, I’d want a way to get into it from the outside aside from just that tile. What if I needed to get in here to interrogate someone?”

“Good thinking,” Keith said. He started examining the walls carefully, running his hands along the high-tech pattern. “There must be a switch in here somewhere.”

Lance followed suit. “And if we find the switch, we find our way out.”

A few minutes of thorough searching yielded just that, a square in the wall with the slightest bit of give that, when pushed, opened to show a control panel for the room. Several wires, some black buttons with small symbols etched above them, and a green and red button occupied the panel. Keith pressed the green button and, after a brief paused, a door-sized section of the wall slid open with a gush of air. The two stepped out of the room, grinned at each other, and continued down the hallway back towards the villain’s meeting room. 

“Hey,” Lance began as they walked, “I have some questions of my own for you.”

Keith didn’t respond for a beat. “Alright. Shoot.”

“Why were you so sure we had to run earlier? And who is the villain you said you were following? Was it that guy with the really deep voice?”

A reluctant chuckle. “And here I thought you were a bit more dimwitted than most.”

“What’s _that_ supposed to mean?” Lance demanded. “Don’t dodge the question, Kogane. You owe me some answers.”

Keith heaved a heavy sigh. “Fine. You’re right, the villain I was chasing was that really deep-voiced guy. His name . . . his name is Bonfire.”

The name instantly rang an alarm in Lance’s mind. “The villain Hunk was assigned to last week? _That_ Bonfire? But he’s only supposed to be a level 2 villain!”

“Yeah, well, he isn’t,” Keith replied, his tone clipped. “He’s way more dangerous, and not someone you want to get involved with. Believe me, I’ve had my share of close calls.”

Another memory rose to the surface, and Lance halted in his tracks. “That time you showed up at my doorstep. You’re saying he’s the same guy??”

Keith turned back to give Lance a hard look. Lance had only seen that look a few times before, but he recognized it immediately. Underneath the tough, determined expression Keith tried to put up, Lance could see the raw fear that plagued Keith’s mind, the fear and terror that probably kept him up most nights. Bonfire must be one hell of a bad guy for Keith to be chasing even after all he’d been put through. “Yes, Lance. He’s the same guy.” 

“Let me help you. I _want_ to help you.” The words tumbled out of Lance’s mouth without a second thought and, with Lance taking in Keith’s frown of disapproval, Lance realized it was true. He _did_ want to help Keith. Why? Why did he want so badly to help a villain track down another villain? Six months ago, Lance wouldn’t have hesitated to leave Keith to fend for himself. He’d have forgotten about The Robber entirely, found himself a rebound, and dived into other cases from work. But for better or worse, Lance had found himself entangled with Keith Kogane, and now all he wanted to do was . . . 

Keith gave him a tight smile. “That’s a nice thought, Sharp Shooter, but no thanks. I’m The Robber, remember? I need to do this by myself.”

He continued walking, leaving Lance to follow behind. “So? I can still help you, can’t I?”

“Not if you want to keep your job, you can’t.”

Damn. He had a point. “I’ll do it in secret then. I’m good at keeping things secret.”

That earned a wry glance from Keith. “Really, huh? Well, why didn’t you say so earlier?”

Heat filled Lance’s cheeks. “You know what I mean. Let me help you, Keith.”

Keith didn’t have time to reply before Lance’s watch began vibrating, and Lance glanced down to see that Lotor was about to warp to his location. Lance took off the watch, set it on the ground, and stepped back. A plume of green light shimmered from the watch and, after a second or two, it faded to reveal Lotor standing there in a much more injured state than when they’d left him. 

“Lotor!” Lance rushed forward to catch him in his arms before he completely collapsed. “What happened with Blackout?”

“We have to get out of here,” he rasped. “They’re going to blow up the building.”

Lance’s eyes widened, and he looked to Keith for support. “What do we do?”

Keith grabbed his arm. “Hold on, Sharp Shooter. This might disorient you a bit.”

Blue light washed over Lance’s vision and a feeling like he’d been flipped upside down enveloped him. The world around him—and the contents of his stomach—spun, and Lance thought he might pass out. After what felt like an eternity but couldn’t have been more than a few seconds his vision cleared, and Lance found himself standing in the barren lobby of Power Surge Inc. Keith went to Lotor’s other side and took his arm, propping him up between them, and, resisting the urge to vomit, Lance hurried out of the building as fast as his wobbly legs would carry him. 

The three of them left the building not a second too late. It exploded behind them, throwing everyone in forward at least twenty yards. Searing pain shot through Lance’s arm when he landed, and he felt something crunch beneath him. He wanted nothing more than to lay there until the pain numbed a little bit and his head stopped throbbing, but he didn’t have that luxury. Clenching his jaw against the pain, Lance pulled himself up, not even waiting for the dust to clear. 

“Keith! Lotor!” he called. A cough wracked his body and he pulled out a mask from his belt. Lance sent a silent ‘thank you’ to Hunk, who always made sure he carried a couple first-aid supplies. Lance shuffled through the dust, glancing left and right to try and spot his companions. A shadowy lump off to his left alerted him, and Lance hobbled over to find Lotor in poor shape, but thankfully still alive. 

Lance was wondering how he’d be able to find Keith in this mess, but a tap on the shoulder had Lance turning around to see just the man in question, his mask pulled high on his face as well. Keith nodded at him, grabbed Lotor, and together they walked out of the dust cloud. After heading into a nearby alleyway and propping the unconscious Lotor against the wall, the two slid to the floor and fought to catch their breath. 

“I need to call the paramedics,” Lance croaked, his voice hoarse from the smoke. 

He reached for his phone, but Keith’s hand stopped him. “I’ve called them already. But . . . I’m sorry about this, Lance.”

“Sorry about wh—AGH!” Lance didn’t get to finish his sentence, instead submitting to the pain that wracked his body as Keith’s taser dug into his side. He flopped to the ground, the last thing in his vision being Keith’s sad face as he ran away, and the sound of sirens in the distance.

* * *

White walls and blue scrubs greeted Lance when he woke up. His broken arm had been wrapped in a sling, and a numb pain in his other arm had him looking down to see an IV. Lotor had put in the same room as him, which Lance was actually grateful for, the other hero already awake and alert.

“Good, you’re up,” Lotor said. “How’re you feeling?”

“Absolutely peachy,” Lance replied, wincing at the scratchy feeling in his throat. “This is nothing.”

Lotor didn’t laugh. “We need to talk about what happened back there.”

 _So much for trying to lighten the mood._ “Yeah. Who were those three villains? Was Blackout working with them? Their leader is Bonfire, but why was Bonfire classified as a level two villain when he’s clearly something more?”

Lotor pursed his lips. “Those questions are all well and good, but there’s something else we need to talk about.”

“What?”

He gave Lance a pointed look. “Your relationship to one ‘Keith Kogane’?”

Lance didn’t need a mirror to know he was blushing. “What about him?”

“You know 'what’, McClain,” Lotor said, his tone tired. “Let’s stop dancing around the topic, shall we? Who is he to you? Are you involved with a villain?”

Six months ago, Lance would have denied everything. Six months ago, Lance would have sworn to the moon and back that there was no way he could be involved with a villain, no way in hell, because Keith Kogane was a bad guy. Six months ago, Lance knew what his answer would be. 

Except this wasn’t six months ago. This was now, and Lance had no clue what his answer was. 

“I saw the way you looked at each other,” Lotor said. “And from the way you talk to and about each other, it’s clear you have a bit of a history. I’m not one to judge, but just be careful. Stay away from him, Lance. Unless you want to end up like him.”

Lance didn’t know what to say to that. He didn’t know what to think about anything anymore.

Someone knocked on the door, and a nurse walked in carrying a pack of bandages. “I see you two are already awake, which is good. I’m just here to change some bandages and I’ll be out of your way.”

“Thank you,” Lance said, giving them a polite smile.

“Oh, actually I have something else for you, Mr. McClain.” They reached in their pocket and brought out a folded note. “Someone stopped by a few minutes ago and asked me to give you this.”

They handed Lance the note and he unfurled it with the hand that protested the least. At this point, Lance had received warnings from Hunk, Pidge, and Lotor, telling him to stay away from the villain with the piercing gray eyes and the laugh that he couldn’t forget even if he wanted. And yet despite all their warnings, Lance couldn’t stop the biggest smile from spreading on his face as he read the little note in front of him.

_I know I owe you some answers, but just wait a little longer and I’ll be able to give them to you. I’m glad you didn’t die today, Sharp Shooter._

**Author's Note:**

> hope yall liked it! the next part will be coming .... whenever i finish it lskdghdsk


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